On Wednesday, James E. Watson, 58, of Kewanee was sentenced by Judge Richard Zimmer to 48 months probation on each of 16 counts of possession of child pornography.

The sentences will run concurrently.

Watson must also serve 18 months of periodic imprisonment in the Henry County Jail.

The jail time must be served in five-consecutive-day segments and must include weekends.

Watson must also pay $1,000 plus costs on each count, undergo sex offender treatment, and is not to reside at the same address with convicted offenders or ones on supervision.

Watson is not allowed communication with anyone under 18 who is not related, and cannot use a computer without approval from his parole officer except for employment. He will be subject to unannounced computer or Internet supervision using software installed at his expense for Internet monitoring. He is not to use or access social networking unless as a parent or guardian with anyone under 18.

Watson will receive credit for nearly seven months he has already served.

In his sentencing Judge Zimmer noted that possession of each individual film or picture constituted a separate count, making each a separate violation. But the judge said he felt imprisonment at the Department of Corrections would endanger Watson’s health, citing Watson’s “abundance of serious medical issues and extraneous and lengthy list of medications.”

“I can’t ignore his health,” Judge Zimmer stated.

On May 15 Watson was found not guilty of a Class X felony of disseminating child pornography, but guilty on 15 Class 2 felony counts of possession of child pornography.

The verdict followed a bench trial held on May 7 in which Sgt. Trey Barker of the Bureau County Sheriff’s office and a member of the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force, testified that Watson was using a peer-to-peer sharing network when Barker’s computer notified him that someone in the Kewanee area was downloading a child pornography file.

A subpoena to Comcast found that the service was being paid by Watson.

During an interrogation after his arrest, Watson told police, “I might as well admit it. I’m addicted to porn. I’m bored, I’m retired, I have way too much time on my hands,” according to testimony in the case.